


Wishes come true

by sepherim_ml



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Community: hd_owlpost, HP: EWE, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Not Epilogue Compliant, Post-War, Romance, Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-24
Updated: 2016-11-24
Packaged: 2018-09-02 00:04:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8643421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sepherim_ml/pseuds/sepherim_ml
Summary: Draco finds the Mirror of Erised in an abandoned classroom. There's an old family legend regarding the mirror and a spell that can make the images in the mirror come true...





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of Owlpost exchange.  
> Happy holidays, geminifaerie84! When I found your prompt on the Mirror of Erised, I snagged it straight away. I hope you enjoy the result!  
> Thanks so much to fantasyfiend09 for beta-ing the fanfic as part of the exchange. You're brilliant!

At first glance, it looks like an impressive, ancient mirror.

Looking more closely, Draco can see that there's so much more to it than meets the eye, starting with the inscription carved in the golden frame that reveals the true nature of the magical item in front of him. 

The Mirror of Erised is a unique piece that reflects "one’s heart's true desire" and not the person standing in front of it. Why the Mirror is left unguarded in an abandoned classroom, covered only by a dusty sheet… is a mistery. 

Draco can't blame headmistress McGonagall. A lot of things had priority over the Mirror; first the raging war, then the rebuilt, and finally the great reopening of Hogwarts. In addition, McGonagall admitted also the eight years, the students who were unable to attend lessons and prepare for their N.E.W.T.s during Voldemort's power trip.

Students like Draco, for example.

Draco looks at his own reflection in the Mirror. Apart from some details being off - like the hair, longer than he used to have, or the small crinkles around the eyes -, there's no doubt it's him, even if the resemblance with his father mislead him at first.

Real Draco blinks once, twice, then crosses his arms. The reflection doesn't copy his movements.

"I thought the Mirror of Erised reflects one’s person's true desire...", he thinks aloud, getting closer. It's odd that his desire is watching himself doing nothing.

Draco remembers quite well what Great Great Aunt Cassiopeia has told him about the Mirror when he was only six years old.

_"... reflect one’s heart's true desire. That's not the end of the story, Draco. There's a spell. You can say it in front of the Mirror and the desire reflected will come true. But you can say it only once and at the right time. I can tell you, if you want. It's..."_

Draco never thought about it again until that very moment. Of course, what are the odds to find the Mirror of Erised in a lifetime?

Mirror Draco grins, like he knows exactly what Real Draco is thinking, raises his right arm, and in a second a new person appears under it, perfectly nestled in his embrace. The two smile at each other, then at Real Draco.

"Impossible!"

Mirror Draco is hugging Harry Fucking Potter.

 

***

 

Draco turns the corner and bumps into someone. The words come out of his mouth automatically, before he can recognize Harry Potter.

"Watch out, idiot!"

Great, he postponed dinner for nothing.

"Watch where you're going too, Malfoy!"

Potter is alone, and Draco misses Weasley's stupid comments because they would wipe out the awkwardness he's experiencing for something fun. But, Weasley, of course, would be long gone, having torn through his meal like the stray animal he is.

For the first time, Draco can't find the words. Potter seems as much baffled as he is.

"That's a first," he comments and walks away.

Draco turns in direction of the Great Hall. "Bloody fantastic. This really makes my day."

Potter is making his life troublesome, both in mirror and real form. Nothing new, but somehow things are more emotional now, and Draco feels more vulnerable, which he hates.

He ignores the flock of first years, trying to craning their necks to follow his movements while whispering to each other, and takes off to supper.

Draco refuses to feel vulnerable and overthink of that damn mirror.

 

***

 

Draco shifts uncomfortably on his chair and stretches, his back protesting for all the time spent bent over the table in the library.

Lessons are tough and there is great pressure to succeed on Draco. He refuses to show any sign of weakness, not now when he has all the world against.

He's aware of his mistakes, and he's living with the consequences of having made them. Not forever, though, he cannot have them follow him everywhere, overshadowing his steps. And this starts with the N.E.T.W.s, because, for Merlin's beard, there is sure to be someone who would have a problem with evaluating a former Death Eater.

So, for the following months, Draco will study hard in the quietness of the library, far away from the threatening glares of his fellow Slytherins.

"Focus, Ron!" Granger's voice tears Draco's attention away from the Transfiguration paper. "I won't write the assignment for you!"

Potter and his obnoxious friends are studying a table not too far from Draco’s. Granger is explaining something to her thick-headed boyfriend, who stares at her dumbly, not batting an eye. Granger punches him on the arm, causing Weasley to protest vehemently in return.

In contrast, Potter's eyes are distant. The candlelight creates a contrast with the shadows on his face, making him look older than his age and damn tired too.

"Harry?" Granger calls him with a soft voice. "You okay?"

"Sure," Potter reassures her with a fake smile. He takes a book, pretends to read, trying to act with nonchalance and failing miserably.

Granger seems both sceptical and worried, at least as much as Draco.

Weasley looks unperturbed by the exchange. "But it's supper time! I'm hungry! Can we study later?"

Granger smacks him again, on the head this time, and they start bickering, Potter at his own devices. In the end, Potter stops pretending and resume sulking.

 

***

 

Draco visits the Mirror of Erised a second time on a whim. He just _happens_ to stroll by on his way back from the Owlery.

This time, the reflection offers a picture too nice to be true: Mirror Draco is hugging Mirror Potter again, they're happy, carefree and fucking irritating.

"Oh, come on," he snorts when his parents join the couple. The four of them smile at each other, Father and Mother in their usual regal manner, sure, but their spirits are definitely high.

The group is mismatched, yet serene. Like a family.

"This is getting ridiculous."

Draco stays in the empty classroom staring and commenting with all due satisfaction until curfew.

That night, the Dark Lord, Snape and Crabbe fade from his dreams and countless of unreal, happy family images start haunting his sleep.

 

***

 

Days and weeks pass, Draco knows it's insane to keep visiting the mirror, he's aware how many people have lost their minds running after dreams and fantasies, but he can't help it.

The temptation is more than he can handle, and he is losing his mind.

Now every time he crosses Potter's path, he cannot help but think about what he's seeing in the Mirror of Erised on a daily basis. Draco is ashamed to admit he's acting like a damn Hufflepuff.

"Malfoy is up to something," Draco overhears Potter whisper to Granger and Weasley during a Potions class. "I'm sure of it."

Draco freezes. He doesn't hear the answer, although Potter's suspicious eyes are on him for the rest of the day.

It's like going back to their Sixth Year, but now, for some stupid reason, Draco basks in the attention, something Potter hasn't given him since end of war.

That night Draco sits in front of the Mirror again.

Mirror Draco and Potter are in their thirties, both dressed in Auror uniforms, snogging like idiots.

The words of Great Great Aunt Cassiopeia come back to his mind to tempt him again.

_"... there's a spell. You can say it in front of the Mirror and the desire reflected will come true. But you can say it only once and at the right time. I can tell you, if you want. It's..."_

Mirror Potter waves and stretches his hand out.

Draco would like nothing more than to reach and squeeze it, to be part of that merry picture and put the loneliness behind him.

" _Exaudi -_ " Draco stops himself from spilling the whole incantation, frightened by his own voice and the bared desire showing through. That's so... "Pathetic."

Mirror Draco shakes his head, places a hand over Potter's shoulder and nods. _You can be in my place_. It's subtle, but the promise is much too tempting. 

It could be the right time. The _right_ moment Great Great Aunt Cassiopeia mentioned. Now or never.

" _Exaudi abditam -_ " The written inscription starts glowing, bubbles form on the surface, and Draco stretches out his own hand. Mirror Potter does the same, smiling. It's so close - " _Volu-_ "

"What are you doing?"

Draco jumps to his feet, wand in hand. Potter's head - _Real Potter’s_ head - head floats mid-air in front of the door.

"Potter! What the hell!"

"You shouldn't be in here!"

"Look who's talking!"

Potter takes off the rest of the Cloak of Invisibility. "What are you up to? What were you doing to the Mirror of Erised? And why the hell is it still here?"

"Still?" The Mirror is back to normal, like the incantation never started. 

"Dumbledore should have moved it elsewhere many years ago." Potter's voice is strained.

Draco turns his back to give Potter a couple of seconds to recover. The Mirror reflects them again, a younger version, though; now Mirror Draco is placing a hand on Mirror Potter's shoulder, stroking him and whispering something soothing into his ear.

Draco would pay galleons to hear the conversation, just so he would know what to say.

"It's not the first time you’ve seen it," says Potter. His voice is steadier. The heat is gone. "You should have said something to McGonagall."

"Would you?" Draco asks. "Did you, when _you_ found it?"

The silence is eloquent.

"Figures."

They stare at the Mirror for hours, without speaking, until dawn breaks and finds them curled up on the floor. Draco pretends not to see Potter's cheeks streaming with tears.

They stand up to go to breakfast, and Draco brushes their shoulders together. It's a little. It's nothing, but the gesture is worth a million words. He just hopes Potter can feel it.

 

***

 

They settle into an odd routine.

They meet by the Mirror for the following nights. Never speaking, only staring. 

Potter doesn't cry anymore, but Draco thinks it's pride, mostly, because he always seems miserable. Draco would give all the Malfoy fortune to have a peek at what he's seeing.

No one mentions it to McGonagall and the Mirror stays there, leading them on, intoxicating their thoughts and feelings.

It's Potter who breaks the silence for the first time. "What do you see?" Then he snorts, gathering the legs to his chest. "Never mind."

"A family." Draco surprises him, without taking his eyes off the mirror. "Happiness."

"Seems nice." Potter’s voice is distant, detached, almost regretful. 

Draco smiles at the couple in the mirror. "Yes, it is." A warm feeling spreads over his chest. "That's kind of the point, staring at this mirror... isn't it?"

"I see all the people I lost." Potter's voice is cold, yet full of pain.

Draco stops breathing for a moment. "Potter -"

"You wouldn't understand. How could you? You have no loyalty." Potter scoffs. " _Your_ side was whatever side served your interest best at any given moment. You didn't lose _your_ people. In the end everything worked out for you and your conniving family, didn't it?"

"I did! I lost something too!" He grabs his own arm, right where the Dark Mark is. "Living in a house full of psychopaths who could kill or torture me and my mother at any second was a nightmare! I was fucking terrified all the time. I lost my freedom, I almost lost my parents, I saw and did horrible things. All of us have lost something."

 _I've lost a part of me_.

Potter stands up and starts yelling. "Don’t tell me about sacrifices! You’re a just fucking coward, Malfoy! You just chose the easiest path without caring at all about the consequences!" 

"Yes, I was a fucking coward!" Draco spits the word out with disdain while jumping to his feet. "But I didn't take the mark for my own amusement. It wasn't a choice, it was the life or death of my mother and my father. I was brought up thinking Muggles and Muggleborns are scum, I don’t want them in the wizarding world, but I don’t want to kill any of them!"

"You're here. Your parents are alive and fucking reinstated in high society. You saved your own arses again, so don't give me that bullshit."

"It's not a competition over who feels more miserable. But if it were? You win. Of course you win. Who could be more miserable than you?"

Potter's eyes are fired up, and he looks more alive now than he has any time they have met up since the beginning of the year. He's not distant, lost in thoughts, or impossibly sad. He's more the Potter Draco knows.

The heated argument feels more like a much-needed outburst, and Draco feels oddly relaxed. He had never vocalized this thoughts aloud, no one would have listened to him, and yet he yelled them to the person he always despised and admired at the same time.

Draco hopes to share this cathartic moment with Potter. 

"No one is belittling your actions, your strength, your power, everything you did and lost. But not everyone can be like you. I'm not expecting forgiveness. I acknowledge my mistakes, but I want a second chance." 

"You don't deserve it. You're a coward, and your actions had consequences. Horrible consequences." Potter casts a quick glance towards the mirror. "All our actions have weight, for better or worse. You cannot just pretend nothing happened."

"Nothing will let me forget, but I refuse to let this define me. I'm not just _this_."

"There's not much more to you."

It hurts and angers him. Egotistical Gryffindors. "The world is not divided only between good and bad people."

"You're so full of shit." Potter storms out, leaving him alone.

 

***

 

"You're here."

Draco finds Potter in front of the Mirror again, leaning against a desk, a week after their fight. He hadn't expected Potter to come back or to not tattle the existence of the Mirror of Erised to the headmistress. Relief washes over him.

"Feels cosy in here." Potter is stiff, but he seems unfazed when Draco sits near him.

"Granger and Weasley don't know about it?"

"Do you see them here nagging me?" Potter's voice is light, and Draco feels in on the joke but also tested. Draco has no intention of failing by taking the bait. "You're an idiot."

"You too."

"I'm better than you anyway. Not that it's so difficult, you're a lost cause."

That night they speak. Nothing serious, only unimportant stuff, but it's a conversation nonetheless, and Draco doesn't feel so vulnerable right now.

Baby steps in the direction of a second chance is what Draco has been waiting for.

 

***

 

They don't fight anymore. They discuss, bicker, mock each other, but they no longer use harsh words.

During classes, Draco keeps peeking at Potter. Sometimes their eyes meet, and it’s hard for him to look away. It’s weird, but their evening meetings are the only highlights of Draco’s days.

He waits for sunset with anticipation, then he always arrives first at their usual meeting point and pretends to work on his homework, while checking obsessively the door.

Draco ignores the mirror. Sometimes, he’s tempted to remove the sheet and look beneath. But then Potter arrives, they talk and the reality is so much better than a dream.

One night, Potter falls asleep on Draco’s shoulder. 

At first, Draco freezes.

Potter has never been so trusting in his presence nor so close, and Draco’s heart is doing some unnecessary jumping in his chest. After some time, though, Potter starts moving in his sleep, distressed.

"Potter," Draco shakes him. "Wake up."

Green eyes open, still half asleep. Potter’s glasses are crooked on his nose, but before Draco can fix them, he sits up, looking embarrassed.

"I didn’t mean to fall asleep." Potter’s voice is almost accusing, like it’s Draco’s fault he fell asleep against him.

"Don’t fret, Potter. I’m flattered you considered me a comfy pillow."

Potter shoves him, his cheeks cherry red. "You’re such a smart arse."

"Yeah, so flattered."

"That’s the best you can hope for, being so obnoxious all the time."

Draco laughs. How things have changed between them! He dreads the thought of going back to what they were, but day after day, he allows himself more hope that they can become what he dreams them to be.

 

***

 

They kiss for the first time on Christmas day. They were the only eight years to stay in an almost empty Hogwarts.

They avoid going down to the Great Hall for the usual Christmas meal in favour of staying in the abandoned classroom where the Mirror of Erised is. 

Potter asked some house-elves to give him food and alcohol, while Draco rearranges the classroom to make it more welcoming. A sheet still covers is covering the Mirror of Erised since their fighting, the mirror forgotten. 

It's _their_ place now, where they meet and speak, do homework and run away from the constant staring of other people. It’s their safe haven.

As their first kiss happens after drinking firewhisky, it tastes of alcohol and mince pies. They keep kissing until their lips are red and swollen, and, after that, they lie on the floor in a makeshift bed.

"You're still an idiot, Potter," Draco comments while Potter snuggles against him. Potter's groggy with sleep, his hair in all directions and his expression relaxed. Potter leans on him completely and it makes Draco perfectly content.

They kiss and it's not a shock. Draco is amazed that after only two months of chatting they reach that point, when they spent seven years on opposite sides, fighting all the way through. It could be the lingering effects of the war, or just the loneliness.

"You should start calling me Harry," whispers Potter, half asleep. 

Draco smiles. "You can call me Mr Malfoy."

"I call you bastard," Harry mumbles. 

 

***

 

Granger catches them kissing and doesn't look flabbergasted, which says a lot about her observation skills. She does tell Weasley, though, who yells and insults for two, and then she demands that Harry tell McGonagall about the Mirror of Erised.

They do, and the Headmistress takes away the Mirror the very same day. It's not a loss, they haven't look at the mirror in a very long time, but the class looks very empty now.

So Harry takes his hand and brings him outside. Harry doesn't let go and doesn't hide their relationship, instead he parades it like a personal victory. Granger and Weasley are by their side (bickering the whole time), but no insults come their way.

Draco stands tall. Letters and Howlers full of anger start arriving. He burns them and keeps only his parents' disappointed correspondence. 

"I'm not dying to meet them," confesses Harry, watching some of the letters burning in the fireplace of the common room, his voice again distant and worried.

"They'll come around." Draco shrugs, moving the Knight on the chessboard, following Weasley’s last move.

"They're dicks."

"Ron, shut it!"

"They are," Draco admits. Weasley, Granger and Harry look at him. "But they're my parents. Family always comes first."

"I thought blood purity did. Malfoy family motto and all -," comments Weasley.

Harry shoots him an understanding look from the carpet where he's studying with Granger.

In a way, they are two sides of the same coin; Harry has been looking for a family all his life and Draco has always been afraid of losing his. 

On the contrary, it's by looking at a tempting - yet artificial - reality in a mirror that brought them closer, giving them the chance to start building a relationship.

Weasley scoffs, but keeps his mouth shut and doesn’t comment. Draco cannot believe he's playing chess with him, in the same room as Harry and Granger, without fighting. It's the result of Granger's intervention and some effort from Weasley, but the common affection for Harry was what did the trick.

"Can't wait to see Harry in the family pictures. Checkmate." Weasley announces it obnoxiously, with a wide and triumphant smile.

"Rematch," demands Draco.

"Again, Malfoy?"

"Your luck is going to run out."

Harry stands up and comes to him. "You can play tomorrow. Now, I demand some attention."

Weasley makes a face and jerks up. 

"That's our cue to leave. Goodnight," smiles Granger.

Left alone, Harry sits on the armrest. "You like them."

"How can Weasley be so good at playing chess and be an idiot at everything else?"

"Draco."

Draco's eyes shoot to him. "Mother and Father are more worried about being is a family picture with the Weasleys than you, don't worry."

"Are they?"

"A lot of things changed after the war. Also, some sponsorship from the Boy-Who-Lived wouldn't hurt, maybe it could make things better." He places a hand over Harry's leg, smirking. "It did help my cause."

"I really hate you sometimes, Malfoy." Harry smacks him on the shoulder, but the underlying tension still show on his face. He may not like Mother and Father, but he knows how much they mean to Draco.

"Family comes first, and you're part of it."

Then Draco proceeds to kiss him senseless, to show him how things have changed and how they will be from now on. 

 

***

 

One day, many years after, Draco finds Harry in their bathroom, brushing his teeth. He's shirtless and he's mumbling something under his breath that sounds a lot like an insult directed at the alarm charms that failed to awake him on time.

Draco smiles and envelopes him in his arms from behind, resting his chin on Harry's shoulder.

"I'm late," complains Harry, spitting into the sink and starting to rinse.

The mirror gives Draco the reflection of a couple in a very intimate moment. So much better than the Mirror versions of themselves. This is real.

" _Exaudi abditam voluntatem meam*_ ," Draco mutters. 

The mirror doesn't move, the reflection doesn’t change. Harry is still a warm and comforting presence against his chest. They're still there, snuggling, and so, so late.

Harry's head comes up. "What?"

"Nothing." Draco kisses him on the shoulder. "Let's go to work."

**Author's Note:**

> \- The complete spell is _“Exaudi abditam voluntatem meam”_ which translates in _“Make my hidden desire come true”_.


End file.
